Automatic alternating current arc welding system



March 10, 1953 A. F. CHOUINARD 2,631,257 AUTOMATI ALTERNATING CURRENT ARC WELDING SYSTEM Original Filed 00.11. 18, 1949 2 SHEETS-SHEET l 60 CYCLE JUG DOWN INVEN TOR. dlffedIC/wzwmm,

up. mm

,Timm D wm @b r mm a mm F b b m w m y March 10, 1953 A. F. CHOUINARD vAUTOMATIC ALTERNATING CURRENT ARC WELDING SYSTEM 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Original Filed Oct. 18, 1949 .www

a Dow/v JUG UP /31 afm .ETP @wma R/o Mfr a #www @if f mmm mwa um nu.. u a u Patented Mar. 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE `lAU'IIVIA'IIC .-AIJTEENATING CURRENT 'ARC WELDING SYSTEM Alfred'F. Chouinard, Chicago, Ill., assignorto National Cylinder Gas Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Original'application 0ctober'1`8, 1949, 'Serial No. 122,029, .now Patent No. 2,602,870, dated July -8, .1952. .Divided and this applicationjMay 19,

1951,'SerialNo.'2275178 f6 l Claims; (Cl. CB14-.32)

My .invention relates, generally, 'to arc Awelding .'syste'ms, and it has particular relationto auto- Yniaticarc welding.systems. This applicatlonis :ing-operation is .to be performed, the'feeding "of thereof shown in the accompanying. drawings `and Vit comprises the features of construction,

combination of elements, circuit connections and arrangement of parts .which will `be exemplified .in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application .of which will .be indi- 4catedvin the Aappended claims.

.For .a more'complete understanding ofthe naturea'nd 'scope of' my invention, reference'may be had to the following .detailed descriptionjtaken together with the accompanying drawings; in Whichz' y. .Figure l .illustrates 'diagrarnmatic'ally Ian vembodiment of 'my invention fin which the Aenergy for operating the motor for feedingthe electrode toward the work Vunder welding conditions is de rived solely from the are circuit; and

Figures 2,3, 4, and 5 are circuit diagrams which .show the connections to the motor for operating it in either a forward or a reverse direction under .different operating conditions and employing the .circuit connections as shown in Figure 1. y Referring now particularly to Figure 1 of the drawings, it will be observed that the reference character I0 designates a source of alternating current, such as a sixty cycle source. Forillustrative purposes the source I0 has been indicated as providing a voltage of 440 volts for .energizing the system to be described presently. One terminal .ofthe source IU may begroundedand the Y chassis of the control yapparatus-tobe described :may .be connectedttothe same-ground. .Itswill .be understood that :anyconventional source :of

`alternating current can be employed and that thesource I0 is .merelyrepresentative o'i.such conventional-source. The source :I0 maybe connectedby switches I I .and aline contacter I2 for energizing. the primary Winding I6 of a welding transformer Vthat is shown Vgenerally vat 'IL M'Ih'e welding transformer AI'I has a low voltagev secondary winding I8 which, in conventional man.-

jner, may be connected to maintain a weldingI arc i9 between a welding electrode "20 and .work "2'I on which the welding operation is to 'be performed.

With a view to feeding the Welding electrode`2il .forwardly toward the work 2`I and retrac'tingfit therefrom, feed rollers 2'2 are provided. One or more of these feed rollers maybe connected, as shown, to an armature 23 of a series type-motor that is indicated, generally, at 24. The motor 24 includes a series field winding 25.` As will appear hereinafter, the armature 23 and series ield winding 25 are connectedinseries circuit relation and provision is made for reversing the connections of one with respect .to the other 4for .the Y,purpose of feeding the welding electrode .20 `toward. or away from the work 2 I.

VIt will be noted .that .an auxiliary transformer, shown generally at.2'l, is provided having a primary winding .28 which is connected tobe energized from a 110 volt sixty cycle source. The transformer ZIhas a secondary winding 30 `which is. arrangedto energize'conductorsrSI and.32 `with .fajxedvol-tage. .This voltage may-also be .1110

volts. .-It will .be .understood `tlzlatthis voltage y .stated for .illustratiye Ypurposes :only since,l

.appropriate .-changes-..in-,design, another voltage vcan be employed.

, age which is derived fromthe voltagefacrossthe As will appear presently, provision .is

made for deriving a voltage from thearc I9 which issubstantiallyhigher than thearc voltage. This voltage is applied to the armature .23 and eld winding .25 .in seriesso vthat theformer rotates vat a speed which, in-eifect, is determined by the voltage across the arc i9. "Thus, as the voltage .across the are T9 increases, the speedatwhich the armature 23 rotates is increased "to eifecta 'faster'forward feeding of "the e`le'ctrode'2ll.` v'Conversely, when the voltage across Athe arc rIB decreases, the effective voltageappliedto the *arma- 'ture Z3-and series :field'winding- E2571s redueed'and.

`a, b and c.

accordingly, the armature 23 rotates at a slower speed. It will be noted that the voltage across the arc IS is applied between conductors 33 and 34.

As pointed out above, provision is made for obtaining a voltage which is a function of the voltage across the arc I9 but which is substantially greater in magnitude. For this purpose a primary winding 39 of a transformer, shown generally at 40, is connected for energization across the conductors 33 and 34. The transformer 40 has a secondary winding 4|. The transformer 40 has a high ratio of transformation. For example, the number of turns on the secondary winding 4| may be about ve times the number of turns on the primary winding 39. It will be understood, however, that other ratios of transformation can be employed with appropriate changes in design of the remaining circuit constants. 1 In the embodiment of the invention illustrated inthe drawings provision is made for connecting the motor 24 for energization through the transformer 46 across the welding arc |9, the arrangement being such that the energy for operating the motor 24 to feed the welding elec- `,trode 26 is obtained solely from the arc circuit.

The relationship between the armature 23 and series eld winding 25 of the motor 24 can be reversed by a reversing relay which is indicated, generally, at 62. This relay has a winding 6210, normally open contacts 62af-62c, and normally closed contacts B2b-62d. As will appear hereinafter the operating winding 6210 is connected .for energization under certain operating conditions across the high voltage secondary winding 4I of the transformer 48. In order to change the voltage supplied to the winding 62w an adjustable resistor 63 may be provided as indicated.

The speed at which the motor 24 operates is determined, in part, by resistors 64, 65 and 66. Sliders 64s and 65s can be moved along resistors 64 and 65, as indicated, for varying the connections thereto.

With a view to decreasing the voltage which is applied across the primary winding 39 of the transformer 4i! when a high open circuit voltage exists between the electrode 20 and the work 2|, as when the arc I9 is not maintained r therebetween and they are separated, a resistor 61 is connected in series with the primary winding 39. The resistor 61 may be short circuited by normally closed contacts 43o of a high arc voltage responsive relay 43. The operating winding 4310 of the relay 43 is connected across the secondary winding I8 of the welding transformer and it is arranged to be energized sufficiently to open contacts 43a and 43e when a high voltage, such as 80 volts, appears across the terminals of the secondary winding I8. Below this voltage and during normal welding operations, operating winding 43w is not energized sufciently to open contacts 43a and 43e and they remain closed.

The direction of rotation of the armature 23 is controlled for welding purposes by a manually operated welding control switch which is indicated, generally, at 10. The switch 10 is made up of five switch units 1| through 15 which may be operated by means of a handle '|6 to any one of three positions indicated at It will be observed that the switch 'I6 has three positions, It is shown in the oi position.` When the handle |6 is moved so that 4 the contacts a are engaged, the system is connected as shown diagrammatically in Figure 4 so that the motor 24 is connected for energization across the high voltage secondary winding 4| of the transformer 40 and acts to feed the welding electrode 26 toward the work 2| at a speed such that a predetermined voltage is maintained across the arc IS. When the handle 16 of the switch 'l0 is moved to the b position, the connections between the armature 23 and series eld winding 25 are reversed, as shown in Figure 5, so that the motor 24 feeds the electrode 20 upwardly at a speed which is determined by the voltage across the arc circuit.

The electrode 20 can be moved toward or away from the work 2| under the control of a manually operated jog switch which is indicated, generally, at 86. The switch 80 is made up of ve switch units indicated, generally, at 8| through 85. A handle 86 is provided for operating these switch'units together to any one of three positions indicated ata, b and c. The switch 80 is shown with the handle 86 and the switch units 8| through 85 in the neutral position. The handle 86 can be swung to the a position for jogging the electrode 20 upwardly away from the work 2|. The energizing circuit for the motor 24 in the jog-up position of the switch 8|] is shown in Figure 2. It will be observed that the motor 24 is connected for energization between the conductors 3| and 32 which have a fixed voltage applied thereto from the secondary winding 30 of the transformer 21. Its primary Winding 28 may be energized from the source I0 or a separate source as desired. When the handle 86 is moved to the c or jog down position, the electrode 26 is moved toward the work 2|. The circuit connections for the motor 24 for the jog down position are illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 3. It will be observed that the connections between the armature 23 and series eld winding 25 are reversed from those shown in Figure 2. Also it will be noted that the operating winding 62w of the reversing relay 62 is connected for energization between the conductors 3| and 32.

Since certain changes can be made in the fore going construction and different embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is intended that all matter shown in the accompanying drawings and described hereinbefore shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Iclaimv as myinvention:

l'. In an automatic arc welding system wherelin a welding electrode is fed toward work and an arc is maintained therebetween from an alterhating current source, in combination, an electric motor for feeding said electrode, and a 4transformer having a primary winding with a relatively small number of turns connected for energization across said arc and a secondary winding with a relatively large number of turns connected to energize said motor at a voltage substantially higher than the arc voltage whereby the same feeds said electrode toward said work so as to maintain the voltage across said arc within predetermined limits, the energy for operfor moving said electrode, a reversing relay connected to said motor for controlling its direction of rotation, circuit means for connecting said motor through said reversing relay for energization across said arc whereby said motor moves said electrode at a speed determined by the voltage across said arc, and manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction.

3. In an automatic arc welding system wherein a welding electrode is moved relative to work and an arc is maintained therebetween from a current source, in combination, an electric motor for moving said electrode, a reversing relay connected to said motor for controlling its direction of rotation, circuit means for connecting said motor through said reversing relay for energization across said arc whereby said motor moves said electrode at a speed determined by the voltage across said arc, manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction by energy derived from the arc circuit, circuit means for connecting said motor through said reversing relay for energization to a fixed voltage source, and manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction by energy derived from said fixed voltage source.

4. In an automatic arc welding system wherein a welding electrode is moved relative to work and an arc is maintained therebetween from an alternating current source, in combination, an electric motor for moving said electrode, a reversing relay connected to said motor for controlling its direction of rotation, a transformer having a primary winding for connection across said arc and a secondary winding for connection through said reversing relay to said motor whereby said motor moves said electrode at a speed determined by the voltage across said arc, and manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction.

5. In an automatic arc welding system wherein a welding electrode is moved relative to work and an arc is maintained therebetween from an alternating current source, in combination, an electric motor for moving said electrode, a reversing relay connected to said motor for controlling its direction or rotation, a transformer having a primary winding for connection across said arc and a secondary winding for connection through said reversing relay to said motor whereby said motor moves said electrode at a speed determined by the voltage across said arc, manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction by energy derived solely from the arc circuit, circuit means for connecting said motor for energization to a xed voltage source, and manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction by energy derived solely from said xed voltage source.

6. In an automatic arc welding system Wherein a welding electrode is moved relative to work and an arc is maintained therebetween from an alternating current source, in combination, an electric motor for moving said electrode, a reversing relay connected to said motor for controlling its direction of rotation, a transformer having a primary winding for connection through said reversing relay to said motor whereby said motor moves said electrode at a speed determined by the voltage across said arc, a resistor connected in series between said arc circuit and said primary winding, a relay having an operating winding for connection across said arc and normally closed contacts connected to short circuit the resistor, said contacts being opened when the voltage across said arc circuit exceeds a predetermined value, and manually operable switch means for controlling said reversing relay to operate said motor selectively in either direction.

ALFRED F. CHOUINARD.

REFERENCES CITED rlhe following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,690,489 Hume Nov. 6, 1928 1,915,981 Davis June 27, 1933 1,976,551 Frick Oct. 9, 1934 2,008,411 Blankenbuehler July 16, 1935 2,253,321 Blankenbuehler Aug. 19, 1941 2,340,093 White Jan. 25, 1944 2,354,364 Chapman July 25, 1944 2,371,894 Kennedy Mar. 20, 1945 

